Speed Skating Canada – Seven speed skating clubs from across Canada to receive cash prizes, including the Speed Skating Club of Mirabel and St-Jérôme taking the grand prize of $10,000

Ottawa, August 31, 2018 – Speed Skating Canada’s major sponsor, Intact Insurance, announced today the seven Canadian speed skating clubs that will share this year’s Podium Tracker total prize amount of $40,000.

The $40,000 donated by Intact Insurance this season highlights the insurance company’s dedication to supporting youth sport in Canada. For every individual medal won by a Canadian speed skater at World Cups and World Championships, Intact Insurance donates $1,000 to the Podium Tracker program. The 2017-2018 season marked the eighth year of this program, which has to date donated a total of $370,000 to speed skating clubs across Canada.

The winning clubs for 2017-2018 season are:

$10,000 – The Speed Skating Club of Mirabel and St-Jérôme (Mirabel/St-Jérôme, Quebec)

$5,000 – The Niagara Speed Skating Club (St. Catharines, ON)

$5,000 – The Regina Speed Skating Club (Regina, SK)

$5,000 – The River Heights Speed Skating Club (Winnipeg, MB)

$5,000 – The Vancouver Velocity Speed Skating Club (Vancouver, B.C.)

$5,000 – The Vernon Speed Skating Club (Vernon, B.C.)

$5,000 – The F-18 La Baie Speed Skating Club (Saguenay, QC)

A total of 66 clubs submitted their applications for the $5,000 grants as well as the $10,000 grand prize.

Distribution of the six $5,000 grants was done by random draw, and the selection of the winning club for the $10,000 grand prize was made by members of Speed Skating Canada’s committees, including Derrick MacLeod from the Sport Development Committee, Claire Loberg of the Competition Development Committee, and Rick Hunt of the Officials Development Committee, who scored the applications using a matrix of criteria. The winning club was a unanimous decision by the Speed Skating Canada committees and Intact Insurance.

“The fast-growing Speed Skating Club of Mirabel and St-Jérôme is a very worthy recipient of this year’s award as it has demonstrated a continued dedication to developing and role modeling athletes from a grassroots to elite level”, explained selection committee member Derrick MacLeod. “The $10,000 grant will enhance the mat system within this dynamic club and keep athletes safely training towards excellence at speed within a very positive club environment.”

“Congratulations to all of the grant winners of this season’s Podium Tracker program. The committee had their hands full with the overwhelmingly large amount of incredible submissions. We look forward to seeing the positive impact these grants have on the winning clubs as they have had for dozens of clubs across Canada over the past eight years,” said Robin Monniere, Vice President of Marketing at Intact Insurance.

“On behalf of the speed skating community across Canada, I would like to thank Intact Insurance for their financial support of the Podium Tracker program and their continued dedication to our sport,” added Speed Skating Canada’s Chief Executive Officer, Susan Auch. “The funds go a long way toward encouraging success at the grassroots level by helping winning clubs purchase new equipment, send coaches to development seminars, and ensure their training facilities are up to the highest safety standards.”

More information can be found on Speed Skating Canada’s website at www.speedskating.ca.

About Speed Skating Canada
Speed Skating Canada (SSC) is the governing body for long track and short track speed skating in Canada. Founded in 1887, SSC is comprised of 13 provincial and territorial associations. Speed Skating Canada is committed to Challenge and Inspire Canada to Thrive through the power of Speed Skating. SSC recognizes and values its outstanding volunteers who give freely of their time and expertise. It also celebrates the 63 Olympic medals won by Canadian athletes since 1932, as well as the coaches, officials and other dedicated individuals who helped them on their journey. www.speedskating.ca

Speed Skating Canada would like to thank its sponsors:

Premium partner: Intact Insurance

Funding partners: Government of Canada (Sport Canada), Own The Podium, Canadian Olympic Committee

Official On-Ice High Performance Apparel: Li-Ning

Official Suppliers: Auclair, USANA

Official Technical Equipment Supplier: Nagano Skate

Sport Development Partners: Winsport Canada, Calgary’s Olympic Oval, University of Calgary, Institut national du sport du Québec, Government of Quebec, Canadian Sport Institute-Calgary, City of Montreal, Quebec City, Excellence sportive Québec-Lévis

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For information:
Nicole Espenant
Manager, Marketing, Communications and Partnerships
Speed Skating Canada
Email: nespenant@speedskating.ca 
Phone: 613-797-1630
Website: www.speedskating.ca  
Facebook: www.facebook.com/SSC.PVC 
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SSC_PVC